1851 Mexican elections
The 1851 Mexican elections took place in August 1851 for the purpose of choosing the Congress of the United States of Mexico. The opposition Liberty Party won a majority of seats in both houses of Congress, and the Senate chose Liberty Party leader Hector Niles as President when it met on September 5. The 1851 elections were dominated by the Rocky Mountain War between the U.S.M. and the Confederation of North America. The Mexican people believed the war was the result of an unprovoked attack by the C.N.A. in September 1845, and they initially supported both the war effort and the leadership displayed by President Pedro Hermión. Hermión claimed that the state of Mexico del Norte had been invaded "in the night, in secret, by men who dare not face us in the open." Hermión's popularity reached its height in 1848, when Chief Running Deer defeated North American General Harry Chapin at the Battle of Arroyo de Quatros Hombres. However, when word reached Mexico City in the summer of 1851 of the terrible casualties suffered in the months-long Battle of Williams Pass, popular opinion turned against both the war and Hermión. Several attempts were made on Hermión's life, and he was unable to leave the Presidential Palace without a large contingent of armed guards. On 19 June Hermión appeared before Congress to deliver a special message. Although there was speculation that Hermión would announce his resignation, or withdrawal from the upcoming election, instead he delivered a firey speech defending his war policies, castigating his political enemies, and vowing to continue the war "until we drive the last North American from our soil, and then we will march upon Burgoyne, and I will personally dictate peace terms to Gilpin and his jackals." The speech ended with half the Congress rising and giving Hermión a standing ovation. However, Hermión was immediately shot by Emiliano Zangora a former member of the Hermión guard, who shouted "Viva Huddleston y paz!" before being shot in turn by the Congressional guard. The Hermión assassination caused a wave of adulation to sweep through the U.S.M. Hermión's picture appeared in every shop, while towns renamed themselves in his honor. In the midst of this emotional reaction, the Mexican Senate met to choose an acting president to serve out the remaining three months of Hermión's term. They settled on Raphael Blaine, a Senator from Arizona who had served as Hermión's first Secretary of State. When the Continentalist Party caucus met to choose a presidential candidate, Blaine gained the nomination. Blaine described Hermión as "a true lover of peace, who went to war sadly, and only when his nation was threatened." In spite of the late president's bellicose final speech, Blaine claimed that he had been seeking peace at the time of his death, and vowed that he, Blaine, would continue the quest. The contradiction proved impossible to sustain, and by election day in August, Blaine's support had collapsed. The opposition Liberty Party had to tread carefully in the face of Hermión's posthumous popularity. The party's leading figure, Miguel Huddleston, had been implicated in Hermión's death, and in any case had been reluctant to re-enter politics after his defeat by Hermión six years earlier. The Libertarian caucus settled on Assemblyman Hector Niles of California, who was believed to be a mild opponent of the war, but who had participated in few of the previous year's acrimonious debates between Hermión and his critics. Niles was considered an economic expert, and in spite of being in the opposition party, had spent most of the war as head of a special committee in charge of armaments. Niles prided himself on being a meticulous worker, a family man, and a good businessman. He said little during the election campaign except to pledge himself to end the war "in such a manner as to preserve our integrity and honor." As election day approached and it became clear that Niles' support was growing, Blaine began to attack him as "The Faceless Wonder of San Francisco," and to mock one of Niles' hobbies by saying that he was "the best butterfly collector Mexico has ever seen, but this is no recommendation for the presidency." The voters wanted an end to the war, and considered Niles to be better equipped to do so than Blaine, and gave the Libertarians majorities in both houses of Congress, as well as in state-level elections. As Senator Joseph Marro of Mexico del Norte later put it, "We did not vote for a man who would lead us to greater glory, or for a man who could inspire Mexico with dreams and visions. Nor did we have the choice between reasonable programs, for none were set forth by Niles or Blaine. But the people were tired of war, and this decided the contest." At his inauguration on 5 September 1851, Niles gave a short address in which he again pledged himself to end the war. He offered to meet North American Governor-General Henry Gilpin "at a place of the Governor-General's choice, where we may end this sad conflict in good will." ---- Sobel's sources for the 1851 Mexican national elections are Marro's In the Service of Mexico (Mexico City, 1871); David Marks' Hector Niles: The Mexican Augustus (Mexico City, 1949); and Carlos McBride's The U.S.M. Elections of 1851: The End of an Era (Mexico City, 1960). ---- This was the Featured Article for the month of July 2019. Category:Mexican elections Category:Featured Articles